R1200GSA Hard to start when cold

[tonymarshall]

Is there a trick to starting when cold? My old 1150GS had a fast idle lever (choke) that worked. My Adventure doesnt seem to have a similar function. Is there a choke hidden somewhere? Thanks.

[DarrylRi]

I'm moving this to the Hexheads forum, where you'll hopefully get some attention of the R1200 owners.

[DarrylRi]

As hexhead owner, there's no fast idle lever as on the oilheads. The hexheads are supposed to automatically note the engine temperature and richen the mixture.

You should probably have your dealer investigate your bike for any sensor fault codes.

[JimVonBaden1]

In really cold weather it is sometimes necessary to crack the throttle a bit, bike in neutral, and plutch lever pulled in. This reduces parasidic drag, and gives it just the amount of gas it needs to start. Once running, within about 5 seconds after, it should idle just fine.

Has worked for three winters down to 8° for me so far. YMMV

Jim :brow

[Sanders]

Gotta love these forums...TY JVB I was having a bit of a problem with cold starts myself.

Sanders

[Stuntman]

When you turn the key on, be sure you allow it to run through it's full self diagnostic check before hitting the starter button. That will allow the computer to know the ambient temperature and make proper adjustments for startup.

[sfarson]

In really cold weather it is sometimes necessary to crack the throttle a bit, bike in neutral, and plutch lever pulled in. This reduces parasidic drag, and gives it just the amount of gas it needs to start. Once running, within about 5 seconds after, it should idle just fine.

Has worked for three winters down to 8° for me so far. YMMV

Jim :brow

Was having the same problem and the above trick worked when it was suggested to me at another forum.

FWIW, here's a bit more I heard, coincidently, today from my dealer who put in a service call to BMW after a check of my bike revealed nothing wrong. After the bike starts using the above procedure and warms up, turn the bike off. Then start it normally without the slight throttle assist. This should calibrate the throttle position for subsequent cold weather starts. I haven't tried this last part yet but throwing it out as something BMW told my dealer to relay to me.

[henzilla]

Always used the pull the clutch in method ,especially in cold climates...old habit learned with the HD...it would start in gear...usually in front of a crowd:brow !

[The_Veg]

I've always pulled/pushed clutches whenever starting any vehicle, just simply because that's how my dad taught me to do it. Seems to make sense.